The Chicago Cubs Brass is on the California Grass … Golf Grass!!

A bunch of the boys are whoopin’ it up in the desert made famous by Frank and his friends. A rollicking happy place where the scotch flows and the golf courses never end. A land of breathtaking mornings and gorgeous nights. A world where the stars shine brighter than spotlights.

And finally, and most impactful for many … a town where the women are so eager because most of the other men are “gay, gray or leaving on Tuesday.”

Yes, welcome to the California desert. It’s nice to be there.

Oh, wait. They went to Palm Springs to talk about baseball. Riiiigggghhhhttt.

As the elbow or hip of a Haren, and the brain or muscle of a McCarthy are on many minds, they can escape for a warm dip, a cool glass, and a quick nine.

So, with all that out of the way, let’s get rambling … and do so for the first time in a while …

• The harmful hip of Haren may reach the a certain level of “Hot Stove Talk” that it goes down in Cubs lore with Roberts and Peavy.

• I’ll tell you … I am intrigued by Shawn Marcum. All good on that idea.

• Is it me or do others think that many GMs rating Edwin Jackson as the best arm out there is friggin’ loco? I mean, for real?

• I don’t do this for a living. I watch as a fan. I will never pretend to know what they do. But my two eyes tell me otherwise.

• I compare this to the Vikings drafting Minnesota Safety Harrison Smith in the first one. He went to ND. I watch all ND games. The Vikings apparently do not watch ND games.

• Remember when so many on here were yearning for Casey McGhee to be the Cubs third basemen …

• Always remember … be careful what you wish you for. You might just get it!

• Comment section question of the column: What offensive free agent would you most like to see the Cubs sign? And what pitching free agent would you most like to see the Cubs sign?

• On offense, no one. Seriously. And I take McCarthy for two reasons. One, his pitching. Two, his twitter account is fantastic, and his musings on Chicago would be simply awesome.

• Oh, and one more. His wife is un-ugly, and Kimmy D. needs some company.

• And here’s to Darwin for his gold glove. Clearly the most deserved second baseman. And also to MLB by not losing sight of his accomplishment given the triple-digit-loss season.

• Folks, we are only three some odd months away from the World Baseball Classic!!! Let’s get excited!

• Crickets.

• Yes, maybe it is making baseball a slightly more worldly game. At least, I sure hope it is.

• Finally, will I watch it? Yes.

• My reaction to hearing that Walt Weiss is the new Rockies manager: “Uh, I better settle down, grow up and have kids because I am old.”

• Every sports fan has that moment where a player from his or her childhood is now a coach or broadcaster, and they realize that said person played 20 years ago. Walt Weiss did it for me.

• The GM Meetings normally mean the stove is starting to flicker. The next 30 days should be jammed back with some great baseball talk.

Finally, here is to new Cubs CF Josh Hamilton and his $148 million contract!! Wow, how much would that scare the heck out of you? With that said, enjoy your weekends, be safe, have fun and until next time …